Security Tips for Financial Institutions

Criminals who target specific banks make it their goal to learn about the cycle the bank is using to re-issue credit or debit cards. With this in mind, consider altering your re-issuing cycle on a regular basis so crooks aren’t anticipating your customers' mail.

Wouldn't it be nice to have access to technology that can detect counterfeit currency, fraudulent identification, and altered or counterfeit checks? Actually, this technology is readily accessible in the form of the black light, yet many financial institutions fail to purchase them. Most bank documents have embedded security features that can be observed with a black light, and when fraudulent items are placed under this light, it's easy to see that security features have been altered or are missing. No teller line or front office staff should be without this important device in combating fraud.

Fall is the time we turn our clocks back, creating a problem that many banks overlook twice a year: settings for lights or other security equipment don't always automatically adjust for the semi-annual time changes. And the consequences can be serious; in fact, one of the biggest lawsuits lodged against financial institutions concerns inadequate lighting. Even systems that do automatically adjust should be checked to ensure that the public is protected when using ATMs or night depositories. With this in mind, now is the perfect time to perform night inspections of your banking offices.

Is it possible that you've ever made a customer angry to blog about your "friendly” service? When working with financial institutions I always set up a Google Alert, which searches the internet 24/7 looking specifically for these sorts of comments. Not only have I discovered customers discussing general bank policies, I've even seen comments pertaining to which staff member at an institution is most likely to bend rules to help a customer. To stay informed, be sure to set up a Google Alert for your bank!

Robbers wear baseball caps to try to keep our cameras from obtaining good facial photographs. Consequently, many institutions have enacted a "no hats policy." One simple step, however, can prevent baseball caps from blocking your cameras: Lower the cameras on your walls to below the six foot level, and you'll be able to photograph robbers at their height.

When conducting physical risk assessments, I'm always surprised to see shrubbery planted around entrance doors. Robbers are known to hide behind trees, shrubbery, or even garbage cans so they can take staff hostage when they open in the morning; and ATM customers have been robbed because of lack of bright lighting and the presence of shrubbery big enough to conceal criminals. To combat this problem, I recommend that the shrubbery around a financial institution be no taller than 12 to 18 inches high, with no room to lie down behind it. Would your financial institution pass my physical risk inspection?

When performing risk assessments for financial institutions, I enter offices with the goal of assessing why/how they might incur losses. As part of this risk-assessment process, I often exchange my typical business wardrobe of suits for blue jeans and t-shirts to see if I'm greeted any differently. When I'm not greeted quickly or I'm ignored altogether, we then discuss the issue of potential losses. Losses increase at offices that don't make a habit of friendly greetings, so it makes sense to review this simple rule with your staff.